Section: BUSINESS
Page: C15

Thursday, December 14, 1995

LEADERS FIND FIRM LINK TO TULA BUSINESSES

JAMES DENN Business writer

ALBANY To speed development of relations with the former Soviet Union, a group of local leaders have created Tula International Development Inc., a for-profit company that seeks to link Russian businesses with counterparts in the Capital Region and elsewhere in the United States.

According to Charlotte S. Buchanan, one of the founders of Tula International, the business venture is designed to help people from both countries explore ways to do business profitably with each other.

The idea for a private, for-profit trade group got its start after Tula businessman Genrih Dorofeev started to look for ways to market steel smelting technology in the United States, said Buchanan. Dorofeev ran into some problems. Eventually, he decided the best way to tackle the issue was to form a kind of cooperative effort.

Buchanan said approximately 150 businesses in Tula are looking to the U.S. for business opportunities, and U.S. companies are doing likewise.

``This has some real exciting potential,'' she said. ``But it's still in the developmental stages.''

Buchanan said the president of the newly formed Tula International will probably be Vadim Buhktiyarov, 30, one of two Tula students pursuing a master's degree in business administration at College of Saint Rose. Albany will be the headquarters for Tula International.

The relationship between Albany and Tula began in January 1992, after communism had collapsed and the people of Russia were faced with the transition to free enterprise and a democratic form of government.

At that time, a humanitarian effort in Albany resulted in collection of more than eight tons of clothing, food and medical supplies. Since then, the Albany-Tula Alliance, a non-profit group, under Buchanan's direction, has established strong educational, cultural, medical and business programs between the two cities.

Five delegations of professional and business people from Tula have visited Albany for meetings with counterparts who could provide expert assistance. Some management-level Tulans have spent several months here interning with local industries.

The Alliance also has provided scholarships to local colleges for graduate students from Tula. Russian artists have performed at area schools and events.

Tula is located about 4,600 miles by air from Albany and 120 miles south of Moscow.

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